Alexandria Rotary Club to host 57th annual pork chop and corn feed

ALEXANDRIA — Smokey pork and steamy corn will be back at the Alexandria Fire Hall on Wednesday, Aug. 17, during the Rotary Club of Alexandria's 57th annual Pork Chop and Corn Jubilee.

The jubilee will run from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. with tickets priced at $10, which can be purchased from any Alexandria Rotarian or Alexandria firefighter. A ticket will get you a pork chop, a cob of corn, bread, coleslaw, and a drink of choice. Tickets may also be purchased at the door on the day of the event.

Meals are available for dine-in or take-out.

President of the Alexandria Rotary Club and owner of CYBERsprout Tyler Golberg says the purpose of the event is to bring the community together while raising funds for local projects like the music playground, public docks and the new playground at Curt Felt Memorial Park.

"There is a long tradition of hosting the event in support of community needs," said Golberg via email. "Aside from bringing the community together, it is a great opportunity for our members to volunteer and build fellowship within the club."

Golberg says there is a lot of time and effort to coordinate volunteers while setting up the fire hall and gathering supplies. He added that nearly "400 dozen" ears of corn are shucked the morning of the event.

The event is operated by members of the Rotary club as well as Alexandria firefighters. Together they are responsible for collecting tickets, serving food and cleaning up.

Elden's Fresh Foods provides the pork and Douglas County Pork Producers does the cooking. The corn is supplied by the Anderson Family Farm and drinks come from Henry's Foods.

"We aim to minimize leftovers as much as possible," said Golberg. "Leftover pork chops are given to Rotarians and unopened supplies are returned. Additionally, we work with Pope Douglas Solid Waste Management to make it a zero-waste event."

Golberg says the event averages about 2,500 attendees but saw a decline at the height of the pandemic. He says he hopes to "see the event this year get momentum back on track" and is looking forward to "another great event that helps bring in more attendees than ever before."